On August 26th, 2016, Governor Dayton made Minnesota first with the recent EXECUTIVE ORDER TO PROTECT POLLINATORS. It's great news for our pollinators and environment too. The order includes: 1) Restrictions on bee-harming neonic and systemic pesticides including agricultural use; 2) Pollinator habitat restoration; 3) Development of an inter-agency committee to improve pollinator protection. BUT THE POLLINATOR PROTECTION ORDER IS BEING THREATENED. Here's what you can do to help: Call Governor Dayton 651-201-3400 and Agriculture Commissioner Frederickson 651-201-6219 and tell them "We support the pollinator executive order for more pollinator protection and less pesticide use".READ THE ORIGINAL SCOPING DOCUMENT AND PROPOSED RESTRICTIONS HERE

“...Minnesota set the strongest rules in the nation to protect pollinators from pesticides,” said Lex Horan of Pesticide Action Network. “The plan will help ensure that bee-harming pesticides won’t be used unnecessarily, and it lays the groundwork for reducing the use of neonicotinoid seed coatings. This decision is rooted in the resounding scientific evidence that neonicotinoids are harmful to pollinators. It’s past time for state and federal decisionmakers to take action to restrict the use of bee-harming pesticides, and today Minnesota did just that.”

Unfortunately, MDA’s restriction on neonicotinoids does not apply to all uses of the insecticides in the state, thanks to a federal loophole that exempts seed coatings from being classified as a “pesticide application” by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In his announcement today, Governor Dayton called on the state legislature to close the loophole on seed coatings by authorizing MDA to provide much-needed oversight. Nationwide, about 94 percent of corn seed, and 33-50 percent of soybean seed, is coated with neonicotinoids before being planted. Additionally, nearly all corn and about 20% of soy seeds are treated outside Minnesota and not tracked by the MDA, furthering pollinator decline. Though corn and soy are major Minnesota crops, neonicotinoid-coated seeds grown in the state will be excluded from the state’s new policies unless the legislature takes action. In January 2016, beekeepers, farmers and advocacy groups filed a lawsuit against EPA for failing to adequately oversee the widespread use of neonicotinoid seed coatings — the most common application of these bee-harming pesticides.